<nettime> Bifo (Franco Berardi): Bonino and the Fiscal Compact - the same mistake as the anti-EU crowd.

[Patrice Riemens <patrice@xs4all.nl>]

Since 'Bifo' is one of the tutelary divinities of nettime (just ask 
Geert) I thought it was appropriate to translate (Q&D as usual, Alex F 
can always redress my Italian) the op-ed he published in yesterday's 
edition of Il Manifesto ('quotidiano comunista') the day of the general 
elections, which as we know have both delivered a hung parliament (in 
both chambers) and a larger than expected victory for the 5*Movement.

Bifo's pice resonates with the feeling I had this morning that Italy now 
stands where Greece stood in 2010, with the same road map of austerity 
without end, and in the end the total victory of Big Finance and Big 
Corporate in an accelerated race to the bottom neatly harmonizing with 
the inevitable generalized collapse of both society and nature as we 
know it, a.k.a. l'accident integral theoretized by Paul Virilio.

But then as that other 'foggy' French thinker said (Louis Althusser): 
"l'Avenir dure longtemps".

Have a funky week!
p+7D!

------------------
Bifo (Franco Berardi, a.k.a.) (Emma) Bonino and the Fiscal Compact - the 
same mistake as the anti-EU crowd.
Il Manifesto. March 4, 2018

A number of my friends, especially among my female friends, have 
expressed the intention to vote for +Europa [a political party in the 
general elections -PR] and its candidate Emma Bonino. An excellent 
choice I would be tempted to say, because she is a person of coherence 
and sympathy, and she carries a history of dignity and courage: the 
history of the [Italian] Radical Party, despite current polemics I do'nt 
understand.

Marco Panella came to Paris when I was an exile there in 1977. in those 
days politicians of all parties considered me a scoundrel and wouldn't 
touch me with a bargepole because me and my mates were talking on a 
radio that blasted the austerity favoring alliance of the Christian 
Democracy and the Ppc [couldn't find which party that was, but probably 
on the center-left -PR]. Panella came to express his solidarity and we 
went together to an event dedicated to Pasolini chaired by Julia 
Kristeva. Great times.

I was thinking of them because both Panella's and Emma Bonino's culture 
is entirely political and juridical. On the other hand however, they 
don't have the faintest idea of what things like exploitation or social 
struggles are about.

Emma Bonini is asking you to vote for more Europe, and adds that in 
order to abide by the rules of the Fiscal compact we must abstain from 
any new budgetary expenditures over the next five years. A fantastic 
idea, but for the fact that it is fraught with dangers: our high speed 
'pendular' trains will fall further apart (*), worse than they already 
do now. Pupils in schools in the peripheries will either die from the 
cold or be buried under the rubble, while thousands of teacher will 
commit suicide, either from misery of depression. Millions of people 
will be deprived of health care, and hospitals will run out of syringes 
and dressing material. Medical personnel will say goodbye to the public 
service and take up jobs in private health institutions.

So how many tens of thousands of deaths is Emma's brilliant idea going 
to cost? No, I do not think that destroying what is left of the welfare 
state is a good plan. Does that mean that I am for less Europe? Not at 
all! I just want to say that Emma Bonino doesn't 'get' what (current) 
Europe is about.

Over the last years the European Union died in the heart of the majority 
of Europeans. And the anti-Europe sentiment has grown in exact 
proportion with the pace the neo-liberal ruling class has transformed 
Europe in an instrument of the powers of finance, reason why workers see 
Europe as the cause of their misery. The imposition of the Fiscal 
Compact, which amounts to systematic removal of resources from the 
pockets of the workers to compensate for the [abysmal] debentures of the 
banks is the obvious cause why the European Union is in its death 
throws.

The Fiscal Compact is a noose around the neck of the european 
population. And when the noose is pulled, no blood reaches the head any 
more, and the European population in agony flees into the hands of those 
preaching violence, hate, and nationalistic racism. This is what the 
Fiscal Compact amounts to.

Bonino makes exactly the same mistake as the anti-Europe crowd of 
whatever hue, which clamors for an illusory national sovereignty: taking 
Europe and the Fiscal Compact for one and the same thing.

I vote for the Power to the People (Potere al popolo) Party, because I 
want Europe to be not the instrument of the financial system but an 
instrument for equality in salaries for all European citizens, and for 
solidarity, a universal basic income, and a reduction in working hours. 
I Vote for the Power to the People Party, because despite its somewhat 
backward name I want to break with society's enslavement to the 
authoritarian rule of the Fiscal Compact and see society freeing its 
energies from the dominion of the financial system.

Q&D tranlsate by yrs truly,
Fiesole, March 5, 2018.

(*) They literally do! They were sold both to the Dutch NS and Danish 
DSB - having identifies no less than 156 structural defaults, the Dutch 
send them back and lost quite some money, the Danes fixed them - over 5 
years - at the builder's expanse and got'm for free in the end. The 
ex-Dutch ones are now being 'made over' at Ansaldo Breda for the Italian 
state railways - I can't wait to see them pass by! ;-)

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